The validity of male patients' self-reports regarding prostate cancer screening.

BACKGROUND

Despite the high rate of prostate cancer screening, the accuracy of male patients' self-reports of screening has not been investigated. This study assessed the concordance between patients' self-reports of prostate screening and the medical record.

METHODS

Focus groups were conducted to obtain male patients' perceptions of prostate cancer screening and salient terminology. A sample of males (n = 276), 40 years of age or older, completed a 15-item questionnaire. Patients' self-reports of PSA and DRE screening were then compared with medical records.

RESULTS

Results showed that patients' self-reports of DRE and PSA were discordant with the medical record 32 and 29% of the time, respectively. Sensitivity of patients' self-reports for DRE and PSA was 82 and 74%, respectively. Specificity of patients' self-reports for DRE and PSA was 56 and 65%, respectively. One in five patients reported that they were not sure how a doctor checks a man's prostate gland. Only 39% of patients knew that the prostate gland can be checked by a blood test.

CONCLUSIONS

There were significant differences between patients' self-reports and the medical record. The results should be of concern to primary care practitioners and to those who evaluate the efficacy of prostate cancer screening programs.